Blog Archives

Theatre Review: TO WONG FOO THE MUSICAL – Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester

Pablo Gomez Jones, Gregory Haney and Peter Caulfield in TO WONG FOO THE MUSICAL. Photo Credit: Pamela Raith

Fast-paced, full of energy and a whole lot of attitude, TO WONG FOO THE MUSICAL is feel-good theatre at its best.

5 out of 5 stars

Last year saw Hope Mill Theatre staged the European premiere of the musical adaptation of CINDERELLA. This year, they have secured the world premiere of TO WONG FOO THE MUSICAL – and what an utter sumptuous joy it is.

Based on the iconic 1995 film, which tells the story of thr...

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Theatre Review: SHYLOCK – Waterside Arts, Sale

Part history lecture and part dramatic performance, Gareth Armstrong’s one-man’s performance of SHYLOCK is powerful and mesmerising.

5 out of 5 stars

Who is Shylock? A caricature? A grotesque? A construction of two thousand years of persecution? All these questions are posed and answered in Gareth Armstrong’s one man tour de force, Shylock, where using the device of Tubal, an eight line and one scene associate of Shylock, he takes us on a tour of not only the play but the systematic antisemitism that informe...

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Theatre Review: CASTING THE RUNES – Waterside Arts, Sale

Designed to frighten and delight in equal measure, CASTING THE RUNES is an excellent retelling of the M.R. James’ supernatural thriller.

4.5 out of 5 stars

Adapting a classic story is always a tightrope; adhere too closely, and the play runs the risk of being slow-paced; adapt too much, and you lose the essence. Pleasingly, Box Tale Soup’s retelling of the classic M.R. James’ story CASTING THE RUNES hits the audience note perfect.

The supernatural tale concerns Professor Duning (Noel Byrne) and Harrington (Ant...

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Theatre Review: BY THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL – Waterside Arts, Sale

The cast of BY THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL 2020 Tour. Photo: Ant Robling

Blending comedy and pathos in equal measure, BY THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL brings Helen Forrester’s autobiographical tale to life on stage.

4 out of 5 stars

Adapting a much-loved book, or series of books, is always a difficult proposition, but in BY THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL, Rob Fennah has pulled off an excellent job of taking Helen Forrester’s autobiographical tale of life in Liverpool on the eve of the second world war from page to stage.

T...

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Theatre Review: THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY – Waterside Arts, Sale

THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY is not a tribute or a pastiche, but a loving homage to the music we all know and love.

5 out of 5 stars

Say the names Simon and Garfunkel to anyone and they will instantly have a place, a time and at least half a dozen song titles immediately in their head. Along with Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel held up a mirror to the immense changes in culture and society happening in the world in the late 1960s. They were simply a soundtrack to a disaffected generation.

Fast forward ...

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INTERVIEW: Sam Dickinson Talks About His New Track, Falling

Sam Dickinson talks about his new track, FALLING and his signing with global AEC Music

Sam Dickinson is back. The north-east singer has finally unveiled his new track, FALLING, his first since signing with global record label AEC music, and it is an absolute banger.

Reviews are already hailing FALLING as magnificent and Studio 54-inspired, and for dance tracks, the praise does not come much higher. FALLING is the first release since his lockdown album OFF SCRIPT and is worth the wait...

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Theatre Review: LEAVES OF GLASS – Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester

Joseph Potter and Ned Costello in LEAVES OF GLASS.

Joseph Potter and Ned Costello in LEAVES OF GLASS. Photo Credit: Mark Senior

Raw and unflinching, LEAVES OF GLASS is a masterpiece of storytelling, dealing with love, hate, memory and loss.

5 out of 5 stars

Memories. Those fleeting shadows of the truth which may, or may not be, accurate and which are ours alone with our versions of the truth. The secrets we keep and the version of the truth that we hold onto to deal with loss...

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Theatre Review: Yippee Ki Yay – Sale Waterside Arts, Manchester

Funny, uplifting and inventive, YIPPEE KI YAY is a nostalgic and affectionate tribute to the classic movie DIE HARD.

4 out of 5 stars

It is often hard to tread the thin line in a parody between homage and evisceration, but YIPPEE KI YAY does so successfully in this excellent, poetry-driven take on the events of Yakatomi Plaza on Christmas Eve...

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Theatre Review: MY FAIR LADY – Palace Theatre, Manchester

With its sumptuous lighting, innovative set and costume design and superb cast performance, the Lincoln Center’s latest revival of MY FAIR LADY is worthy of every plaudit it has received.

5 out of 5 stars

Few musicals are so ingrained in the public consciousness as MY FAIR LADY...

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Theatre Review: THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE – The Lowry, Salford

Keir Ogilvy (Boy), Millie Hikasa (Lettie) & Kemi-Bo Jacobs (Ginnie) in THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE. Photo Credit: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg

With its strong cast performance, amazing puppetry, and sumptuous staging, THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE is a masterclass in storytelling.

5 out of 5 stars

Imagine all the stories you read as a child; fairy tales, myths, Peter Pan and Narnia. Put them in a bag and shake them up, and you have the otherworldliness of THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE.

Adapted by Joel Horwoo...

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